The Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act was passed three years ago, but it has been delayed as the authorities prepare for what’s to come. It finally takes effect from 1 April.
The law doesn’t just apply to social media posts or newspaper articles. It covers anything said anywhere – even in your own home. Children will in theory be able to report their parents. Scots can inform on each other anonymously, through an expanded network of ‘third-party reporting centres’. The list of centres includes a striking number of university campuses, as well as a Glasgow sex shop and a North Berwick mushroom farm.
Scottish police are bracing for the new workload at a time when there is a general crisis in resources. Earlier this month, Police Scotland announced a new ‘proportional response’ strategy that in effect said they will not investigate what they regard as minor crimes: smashed home windows, for example, or thefts not captured on a security camera and which are therefore hard to solve. It is estimated that this change in approach will lead to 24,000 fewer investigations a year, saving 130,000 police man-hours.
https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/...t-with-danger/